Generally, an inspection or a test of electrical characteristic of a packaged or molded semiconductor device, more particularly, an integrated circuit (IC), is generally performed by utilizing an electrical connecting apparatus such as a test socket, i.e., an inspection socket, to which a semiconductor device is removably attached, as an auxiliary apparatus for testing.
There is provided a connecting apparatus of such a type using a crank-shaped contact, i.e., a probe wherein a needle front portion to be in contact with a lead (electrode portion) of a semiconductor device and a needle tail portion to be connected to a conductive portion of a base plate is bent in the opposite directions (Japanese Patent Appln. Public Disclosure No. 7-229949).
In this conventional connecting apparatus, each probe is attached to a common needle presser by an adhesive in the intermediate portion between the needle front portion and the needle tail portion such that the needle front portion extends upward and the needle tail portion extends downward.
In this conventional auxiliary apparatus, however, an assembling work such as attaching a probe to the needle presser or soldering the needle tail portion to the conductive portion of the base plate requires skill, and since the length dimension of an effective area (from the needle tip to a contact point to the conductive portion) is great, there is a limitation in raising the frequency of an electric signal used for testing.
There is another connecting apparatus which uses a plate-like probe formed in a Z-like shape or an annular shape (U.S. Pat. No. 5,336,094 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,388,996). In this conventional connecting apparatus, however, since each probe is pressed against an electrode portion of a device to be tested at its arc-shaped deformed face portion, no scraping action due to a displacement of the deformed face portion relative to the electrode portion occurs, so that a film such as an oxide film existing in the electrode portion is not effectively eliminated. Consequently, a favorable electric contact between the probe and the electrode portion cannot be obtained.
There is a connecting apparatus for testing an electrical characteristic of a non-packaged or non-molded semiconductor device, particularly an IC chip, which uses a probe bent in a C-like shape (Japanese Patent Appln. Public Disclosure No. 5-299483). According to this conventional connecting apparatus, however, since each probe is only held in a socket by its own spring force, and since both ends of the C-like shape must be further curved, the probe becomes complicated in shape and expensive.
Accordingly, in an electric connecting apparatus for testing a device, it is important to simplify the shape of a probe, to enhance the stability of the probe, to make it adapted to a high frequency test, and to facilitate manufacturing the same, while giving an effective scraping action to the electrode portion of the device to be tested by being surely elastically deformed without retraction of the probe when the tip end of the probe is pressed against the electrode portion of the device to be tested.